The present disclosure relates to bed mattresses for supporting patients and to incontinence pads that sense patient incontinence. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to disposable incontinence pads of hospital beds, medical beds, or other types of beds in which the disposable incontinence pads are designed to absorb liquid in case of incontinent events.
In a care facility, such as a hospital or a nursing home, patients are often placed on patient support apparatuses for an extended period of time. Some patients who are positioned on the patient support apparatuses may have a risk of developing certain skin conditions, such as bed sores (also known as pressure sores or decubitus ulcers), due to heat and moisture present at the interface of the patient and the surface of a bed mattress. In an effort to mitigate or prevent such conditions, some bed mattresses have a built-in microclimate structure. While various microclimate management systems have been developed, in certain applications there is still room for improvement. Thus, a need persists for further contributions in this area of technology.